President's Message

The state legislature recently began its 2012 session with little fanfare, which is a sign of the times. With a struggling economy and many sectors experiencing high unemployment, our members are concerned, as their businesses continue to struggle. In times like this it is even more important that we collectively participate in the legislative process and ensure our elected officials understand our concerns and issues and that we work with them to craft meaningful and beneficial legislation.

I was one of those naysayers, who thought that my voice won’t make a difference and because of that, I did nothing. And it was true – nothing I wanted changed. However, in the last several years, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to get more involved with the Chamber and more specifically, got involved in the legislative process. I learned, and yes I can learn sometimes, that our voice is important and it can make a huge difference on how bills are crafted, modified and passed. But none of this will happen unless we all participate in the process and let our legislators and council representatives understand our issues and perspectives and make our voice heard.

All of us on Hawaii Island are very fortunate to have outstanding representatives and senators. Our delegation wants to hear from us and requests input on issues and problem solving and are there to help us. Let’s take advantage of this resource.

During this legislative session, we are committed to ensure our voice is heard. But we need your help. There is definitely power in numbers and we may be requesting your participation in lobbying and other activities. We will also need your assistance in identifying matters which may be important to our members. With everyone’s help you can count on us “Getting It Done.”

Mahalo